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By Jenni Vincent, journal-news.net
MARTINSBURG - With less than a week before the new legislative session gets underway, West Virginia Education Association President Dale Lee is pleased that more than two-thirds of the county boards of education have voted to support a statewide measure aimed at making state teacher salaries more competitive - regionally as well as nationally.
As of Thursday, 41 of the state's 55 counties had formally endorsed the resolution, which organizers...
W.Va. teachers unions want raises
By Mackenzie Mays
CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- Leaders of West Virginia's teachers unions are hoping that this year's State of the State address will promise something that last year's education-heavy address did not: pay raises for teachers.
Education reform was the cornerstone of Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin's 2013 speech, which resulted in Senate Bill 359, a wide-ranging proposal calling for everything from increased third-grade reading proficiency...
The Intelligencer / Wheeling News-Register
CHARLESTON (AP) - West Virginia's teachers unions are pushing for a teacher pay raise to make salaries competitive with those in surrounding states.
The average teacher in the state earns about $45,000, compared to $57,000 in Ohio and about $49,000 in Virginia, according to the West Virginia Education Association.
West Virginia ranks 48th in the nation for teachers' salaries, WVEA President Dale Lee said.
In 2013, the...
Tomblin address to focus on economy, education
By Phil Kabler
CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- Continuing efforts to promote economic development and improve public schools will highlight Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin's fourth State of the State address Wednesday evening, spokeswoman Amy Schuler Goodwin said Tuesday.
"He'll be talking about our commitment to our students," she said. "He'll also be talking about the great gains we've made in our economic development agenda."
As drafted...
CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- Children in Finland remain among the top-scoring students in the world, particularly in science but also in reading and math.
Why? One reason is Finnish teachers are highly respected and valued. The teaching profession in the Scandinavian country is on par with physicians in the United States in respect and pay.
But Finland also enjoys a very low child poverty rate of about 4 percent. Meanwhile, the KIDS COUNT Data Center reported that nearly one in...
By David Gutman
CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- Teachers union and education officials in West Virginia are pleased that Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin, is pushing for teacher pay raises -- but they say a one-time raise is insufficient, and they're wary of other proposals Tomblin made in Wednesday's State of the State address.
The governor proposed a 2 percent pay raise for all teachers and school service personnel. It would be the first across-the-board pay raise for teachers in three years....
by Dave Boucher
Daily Mail Capitol Bureau Chief
CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- Democrat and Republican legislative leaders disagree on Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin's proposal to raise salaries for teachers and state employees.
Tomblin announced Wednesday night during his State of the State address there is a 2 percent pay raise for teachers and service personnel and a $504 raise for state employees included in the budget for next financial year.
That's going to cost the state...
By Mackenzie Mays
CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- During the monthly West Virginia Board of Education meeting on Wednesday -- the same day of Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin's State of the State address -- board members established an "implementation timeline" for the public education agenda that the governor tasked them with in his address one year ago.
Three of the 18 items listed in the board's timeline have been marked "completed": reduce personal services within the Department of Education;...
By Jeff Jenkins in News
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin is proposing pay for state workers in a tight budget year. The governor unveiled the plan during his State of the State Address Wednesday night.
Tomblin wants to increase teacher and school service personnel pay by 2 percent and give all other state workers a $504 increase. It will be the first pay raise for the workers in two years.
While encouraged a proposed raise made it into what’s expected to be a...
by Whitney Burdette
Daily Mail staff
CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- Teachers, school service personnel and state workers will see an increase in their paychecks this year.
Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin announced in his State of the State address that teachers and service personnel -- which includes bus drivers and custodians -- will see a 2 percent increase while state workers will earn $504 more in the coming year.
These increases come in a year where state officials say the...
By Jennifer Smith
CHARLESTON, W.Va. – West Virginia Teacher of the Year Erin Sponaugle shifted into a new gear Thursday as she accepted some impressive gifts for her honor.
The 5th grade teacher from Tomahawk Intermediate School in Berkeley County was handed a check for $5,000 from Highmark Blue Cross/Blue Shield in a ceremony at the state capitol. Then Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin held up a set of keys.
“It’s almost like Wheel of Fortune! Today you’re going home in a brand,...
But W,Va.’s public colleges still must make do with less
By SHELLEY HANSON Staff Writer , The Intelligencer / Wheeling News-Register
WHEELING - West Liberty University President Robin Capehart said he was pleased to hear that Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin is proposing that higher education won't take as hard a hit from state funding cuts.
A mid-year budget report released Jan. 2 shows the state's General Revenue Fund is $81.5 million behind on tax collections for the fiscal...